Friday Eve!

Steve Cooksey strikes back at the nanny state and one more bad side affect attributed to uncontrolled diabetes.   The fun with diabetes never stops, does it?

But, lets get the really important stuff out of the way first.


The Numbers:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Levels:  96 mg/dl.  Oh, yeah. 
• Weight:  189 lbs.  Why does it go on so easily and off so hard?
• Exercise:  45 minutes and I was really dragging.  Five days off makes a difference and not in good way. 
• Mood:  7.0  Good to be back in the saddle.

The Menu:

• Breakfast:  Oatmeal infused with apple cinnamon tea and the usual morning fruit medley.
• Lunch:  Last of the lentil/salsa North African-Mexico fusion stuff.  We will make more. 
• Dinner:  It's Thursday, which means pizza and salad.  The weekend is almost here.
• Snacks:  None.  Too busy again. 

Liberty and Diabetes Education

Steve Cooksey is suing the North Carolina Board of Dietetics/Nutrition and several board members for attempting to censor him, violating his First Amendment rights for saying what he thinks about diet and diabetes on his website.

The Board is suing him for charging for diet and nutritional advice without being licensed to do so.  He says it's censorship because his views contradict their views on the appropriate diet for type twoers. 

Steve is a former type 2 diabetic who cured himself of the condition by following the Paleo diet and exercise.  The Paleo Diet is a low carb, high protein and fat diet.   He is passionate about this diet as the way to cure the condition.  It worked for him.

The North Carolina Board of Dietetics and Nutrition generally recommends a diet that is low in fat and high in complex carbohydrates. That is pretty much a standard recommend diet for type two diabetics.  Mr. Cooksey says they are wrong.  A lot of people agree with him.  You can read about the Board's actions here.  His website, the Diabetes Warrior, is here.

For the record, I tend to follow a diet that is closer to what the Board recommends. It works for me.  I think of myself as having solved my problem, just as Mr. Cooksey does. 

If he wants to sell advice on a diet works for him and many others, is well publicized and backed by research, that is between the buyer and seller.  He stepped on Board's territory and hurt their feelings and they are using the State of North Carolina to sooth their bruised emotions.

Mr. Cooksey hid nothing about himself or what he offers. He says he is not an expert trained in medicine or dietary science.  He's just one big revved up success story who wants to share his success.

This is information readily available on the internet, in book stores or in libraries. So what is the difference between buying a book on the Paleo Diet or paying him for the same advice?  Amazon lists over 400 books on the subject for sale. None that I can see.  Buyer beware, that's all.

Add Pneumonia to the List of Diabetic Worries.

Add another deadly malady to list of conditions to worry about for diabetics.   To heart disease, liver failure, kidney failure, pancreatic problems, neuropothy, dementia, vision problems, (have I forgotten any?  probably) you can add pneumonia to the carnival of fun.

Moral?  Keep that glucose controlled, kids.

When Exercise and Getting Aggressive is Not Enough.

Diabetics should exercise.  That was part of my recommended treatment.  Exercise does help burn glucose.  It's good for your heart and lowers blood pressure. Plus you get to look buff if you do it enough.  It's all good, right?  Maybe.  For an unlucky few exercise may hurt your heart.  Oh, yes,  and aggressively controlling your glucose level will prevent kidney disease.  Maybe.

The Numbers:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Level:  104 mg/dl
• Weight: 189ish.  At least that one's going down, albeit slowly after the weekend. 
• Exercise:  none.  Equipment failure, now repaired. 
• Mood:  6.0 sour. 

 The Menu:

• Breakfast:  The usual morning fruit medley and a whole wheat bagel for something different. 
• Lunch:  Leftover North African/Mexican inspired lentil and salsa and the last of the cole slaw. 
• Dinner:  French potato salad, andouille sausage and a salad.  This was one of my favorite meals as bachelor and fortunately the Charming Mrs. SWMBO likes it as well.  Mostly this is a tasty way to finish up some potatoes getting a bit old.
• Snacks.  A very small handful of chocolate chips also getting old. Very small.  Honest. 

Exercise May Increase Heart Risk for Some

Analysis from a group of studies shows that for about 10% of those exercising, one measure related to heart disease, blood pressure and levels of insulin, HDL cholesterol or triglycerides got worse. About 7 percent got worse on at least two measures.

So, if you are in that unlucky (or lucky if you really don't like exercising) group, what do you do?  I guess nothing, if heart health is why you force yourself to get sweaty.  If you just want to look buff, continue on your sweaty way.

There is one thing that all exercise studies seem to have in common.  None of these studies can say if in the long term exercise does any good.  Of the studies that do show an improved healthy response in the short term, it is implied that those benefits continue for the long term.  Whether that is true is not known.

Aggressively Controlling Glucose Levels May not Prevent Kidney Failure in Type 2 Diabetics.

Uncontrolled glucose levels can lead to kidney failure. That scary little fact was drilled into my head from the very beginning. I control mine through diet and exercise.  For many the treatment includes medication. For some the medication needed to control glucose levels is considered intensive or aggressive. I guess aggressive or intensive means taking taking a lot of it, more than usual.  

From studies of diabetics, intensively controlling glucose levels with higher doses of medication did "not definitively reduce the risk of impaired kidney function, the need for dialysis, or death from kidney disease."

My guess is that this group had the worst diagnoses and in need of dramatic treatment.  Just lowering their blood glucose levels, however, was too little too late.  The damage was done and undoing it was not possible.  At least that makes sense to me.

The fix I bet is to get diagnosed early.  See your doctor.

The Big Sex Post

Sort of.  Did get your attention though, didn't it?  It's really about diabetes how can affect a diabetics sex life.  As you may guess, it's not good and control is everything.

But before we get to the good stuff,

The Numbers, sad as it is:

• Fasting blood glucose level:  106 mg/dl.  Not the worst, particularly after a long holiday weekend seemingly devoted to eating.  Could also be a lot better.
• Weight:  190 lbs.  Gained two pounds in four days.
• Exercise:  None.  Got up too late because we got in too late last night.  Just could not drag myself out of bed at a decent time to get underway.  
• Mood:  6.5. We went to Dallas for the long weekend.  My brother-in-law is an excellent cook and a fine host who believes in preparing massive quantities of food.  We got home late Monday night and watered the yard like crazy because the plants were droopy from the heat and bright sun.  After that it was a late night snack and then off to bed.  Morning came much too early and I just could not drag myself out of bed to go ride. Face it, I need my sleep.  Face it, I am getting older.  Amazing that a 3 1/2 hour trip back from Dallas late in the day can drain me that much.  All I do is sit, if you think about it.

The Menu:

• Oatmeal and the usual fruit medley.
• Lunch:  Leftover lentils and salsa from last week. Definitely a fan fave now around here.
• Dinner:  Pasta Rustica a la Mary and Dave,  which is  Italian seasoned ground turkey, spinach and marinara sauce, cauliflower and a salad.  
• Snacks:  A bit of leftover cole slaw.

 Diabetes and Sexual Health in Men.

A good reason for guys to keep their blood glucose under control.  Nearly 20% of men with severe erectile dysfunction, reduced penile blood flow, overt hypogonadism and bad cardiovascular  health had impaired fasting blood glucose.

I think that means it was chronically too high. 

Checking and controlling fasting blood glucose was found to be good for a man's sexual health and his overall health in general.  I don't doubt it in the least.

Diabetes and Sexual Health in Women. 

For woman, diabetes seems to make everything about a healthy sex life much more complicated, physically and emotionally.  Any issue a normal woman can have seems to get magnified with diabetes. The details are here.

Long and short of it all is if you are diabetic, 1 or 2, get it controlled.  If you are not diabetic, keep it that way.  Eat your vegetables. Your life will be so much better.  

A good roll in the hay just never gets old.

Sugar as Cocaine? Well, It is Cheaper.

May 23, 2012

Is sugar the new coke?   It does make for a compelling headline.  But first...

The Numbers:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Level:  101 mg/dl
• Weight: 188lbs.
• Exercise:  45 minutes of intense perspiration.  Summer in Houston. Since it's not Memorial Day yet, can we wear white? 
• Mood:  8.5.  I just feel good today. 

The Menu: 

• Breakfast:  Usual fruit medley and oatmeal, baked.
• Lunch:  A turkey patty w/ mushroom sans  gravy, cucumber salad and greens with the Charming Mrs. SWMBO at Luby's.  
• Dinner:  The tofu/corn wrap things again.  I think the Charming Mrs. SWMBO has a new favorite.  Me too. 
• Snacks:  A little bit of cheese.

Cupcakes as the New Cocaine?  

I think this is getting a little over the top.  Yes, we all like to eat something sweet.  Sugar is sweet and cheap and it's found in all sorts of things.  Combine sugar with some white flour and some fat and you have the base for all sorts of crave worth stuff, such as the cupcake Sarah Jessica Parker ate here, or Doritos or Banana Flips.  All of that sweet and fat coats the tongue and makes for a culinary version of great sex.

I have a heck of a sugar/sweet tooth.  Heck, I even use a bit of it in a French salad dressing I make and my tomato sauce.  It helps create flavors our tongue finds interesting and wants more of to sample.  Sweet is a basic part of our sense of taste.  It's sending joyous signals to the brain.

But lets get a grip, people.  We choose to eat it.  We have other options available.  Want a cupcake to satisfy that sweet craving?  Have some strawberries instead.  An orange maybe.  Apples are good.

Sugar does not cause us to gain weight or become a  type 2 diabetics. Too much of it, along with too much of a lot of other foods, will make us fat and maybe diabetic.  That is how 85% of us who became type 2 diabetics got that way.  Too much of a lot and we overloaded the body.  It couldn't handle it all.   

Sugar as nasty, vile poisonous stuff is not new.  Heck, Jack LaLanne even talked about it that way. He said he was addicted to sugar and white flour, which was in a lot of the foods his mom fed him. 



Me?  A little bit here and there isn't going to affect me one way or the other.  For the record, I avoid cupcakes and such, mostly.  I have a new habit of not eating it and I want to keep it that way. 

Paula Dean is Good, Good Cholesterol May Not Be and a Bad Idea to Fix Diabetes

Paula Dean loses 30 pounds, a plea to politicize diabetes and HDL is the not so good cholesterol.

Serious stuff, and just as serious:

The Numbers:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Level:  97 mg/dl.  
• Weight 187ish lbs. 
• Exercise:  45 minutes of a very sweaty ride
• Mood:  8.5  It's not Monday.

The Menu:

• Breakfast:  Morning fruit medley, baked oatmeal
• Lunch:  Leftover tofu/corn wrap things.  They are good.
• Dinner:  Wrap mania today, Lentil/Salsa wrap. Good stuff.  North Africa meets Mexico.  Real fusion cuisine going on today, and a salad. Diabetic friendly as well. Tip of the topper to Adjoa
• Snacks:  More of the leftover tofu/corn things. 

The Good Cholesterol Not So Good Now.  

Why is that not surprising?  HDL may not be doing your heart some good.  Well, it does not seem to be doing any harm, anyway.  Yet.

Paula Dean Loses 30 Pounds.

Why should anyone care one way or the other? It's good that she lost the weight.  She will find her life is easier without it and she gets to buy a lot of new cloths.  She is also correct to say the foods she cooks did not cause her problem.  She just ate too much, most likely.  That was the cause.

I think the someone is just jealous because Paula Dean can make a very profitable deal because she is diabetic.

She does look better, a lot thinner in her face.  She has lost weight, has a great deal with a Novo NorDisk and has her diabetes under control.  Life is pretty good right now.  I think she could have done with diet and exercise, and I have always been a bit leery of diabetes medications, but I am also not her doctor or agent who worked out the deal with Novo NorDisk.  More power to her, I say. I just wish I was in her position.  

Is Type Two Diabetes a Political Issue?

No, but now there are calls to make it so.  That teenage diabetes is up substantially, one our of four is diabetic now, a huge increase from just nine years ago, makes some think we need a laws and regulations and taxes to solve the problem.

So how has the war on drugs worked out?  Anyone remember Prohibition?  Despite the taxes and restriction, lots of people still find the the time, places and money to light up a cigarette.

So anyone up for a clandestine Coke, some black market fries, mandatory calisthenics?

Monday Moaning, I am not organic so I am not a jerk

May 21, 2012

There is little organic here, which is why I am a pleasant fellow, looking at the bright side of a world going diabetic and older guys are living longer.  Nothing but good on this Monday in May.


The Numbers:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Level: 102 mg/dl.  Not ideal, but safe. 
• Weight: 187ish
• Exercise:  45 sweaty minute ride.  Houston, we have a summer.
• Mood:  8.00.  The Charming Mrs. SWMBO and I had coffee on the patio.  For a Monday, that's amazing. 

 The Menu:

• Breakfast:  A couple of scones from Saturday and the usual morning medley of fruit.  The grapefruit is definitely at the end of the season. 
• Lunch:  Tofu/Corn lettuce wraps.  No kidding, these are delicious.  I used iceberg lettuce a la P.F. Chang's instead of romaine lettuce.  Tthe avocado slice and the balsamic vinegar make it  Asia bistro meets Italian/Mexican fusion or something.  It's tasty. Try it. Great to make ahead of time and pack for lunch.
• Dinner: Fish tacos.  It's becoming a Monday regular.  The Charming Mrs. SWMBO loves them and their easy to make.  
• Snacks:  Nothing.  Busy day.

Jerk Alert

If you buy organic food, you may be a jerk.  Having shopped in Whole Foods, I can believe it.  Me, I am too cheap to go organic.  To me, it's a scam.

Who brings fruit to movie? 

One in Four Teens May Be Diabetic. 

That could be diabetic or pre-diabetic, but to me pre-diabetic is like being a little bit pregnant.  This was from a study published on line at the Journal of Pediatrics from data collected from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.


Anyway, it's all based on one fasting blood glucose level test and there could be problems with the data collected, but it's still worrisome.  The percentage of teens testing diabetic went from 9 percent to 23 percent in less than 10 years.  Teenage diabetes is harder to treat because teens tend to be more insulin resistant.  Acne and insulin resistance.  Lots of fun being a teenage. 

It wasn't all bad.  The rate of teenage obesity leveled off as did the rate of high blood pressure and high cholesterol. Why the rate for diabetes went up despite obesity leveling off was not readily explainable.  Too much of the wrong food?  Little exercise?  Both.  That would be my guess. 

An Upside to the Global Diabetes Tsunami, Sort Of

Diabetes is increasing here in the United States and globally.  If there is an upside to this, we in America can at least pay for treatments to prevent deaths from the condition.  People in poorer countries with less access to medical care don't have it so good.

The reasons for the global increase are mostly caused by an increasingly prosperous world eating more of the wrong foods and doing less physical activity.  The downside of prosperity. 

Keep in mind that the total cost of treatment is increasing as the number of diabetics increase. It's going to affect everyone and Britain a prime case.

What to do?  Eighty-five to ninety percent of this is all avoidable.  Eat better and exercise, mostly.

Men are Living Longer...But Not as Long as Women

On the cheery side, men are getting healthier and living longer.  They are eating better and exercising, so it can be done.  The problem is how make everyone understand that. 

Sensible Splurge Friday, Reducing Inflammation and Coffee

It's Friday, May 18, 2012

Is there anything coffee can't do?  Probably, but what it can't do doesn't really matter anyway.

But this does matter, the numbers and menu for today.

The Numbers:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Level:  97 mg/dl
• Weight:  187lbs
• Exercise:  45 minute and it's getting sweaty again here in Houston. 
• Mood. 8.0  It's Friday!

The Menu:

• Breakfast:  Leftover pizza and some focaccia bread and the usual morning fruit medley.  Carb mania.
• Lunch:  Leftover chicken breast and some leftover pinto beans.  We are doing some cooking this weekend.  We have a very empty fridge.
• Dinner:  TexMex and it does include some margaritas. 
• Snacks: A couple of Smarties or Cuties, or whatever those little mandarin oranges are called. 

Coffee, Its Does A Body Good

Enjoy a nice cup of coffee

There have lots of studies say coffee is not bad and is really good for us.  For me, it's not really a good morning unless I have my coffee  But while my day brightens as the coffee, the caffeine, works its magic, I can take comfort that anecdotal research shows that coffee drink live a bit long than non-coffee drinker. Coffee drinkers were less likely to die of heart or respiratory disease, stroke, diabetes, injuries, accidents or infections.  

For diabetics it may lead to lower levels of markers for inflammation and insulin resistance.  That's worth an extra cup right there. 

I know this is mostly an anecdotal study, but so what.  It's a good reason or excuse to keep on enjoying my morning joe, black thank you.  

Speaking of Inflammation 

Since I keep reading of inflammation and that it's bad, here are a list of foods that can reduce inflammation. I regularly enjoy all of them, save for the green tea.  I think I will stick with my coffee, thank you. 

Have a good weekend everyone.

Fat, It Does/Does Not Do a Body Good

Friday Eve, May 17, 2012

Sugar and carbohydrates are making us fat, fat is not the problem.  It's causing us to become obese, diabetic and leading to heart disease. Conversely, the the spread of a Western diet, rich in fat, is making once thin countries obese, diabetic and leading to heart disease. 

In trying to understand what foods I should eat and what I should avoid makes me feel a bit like Rod Serling from the Twilight Zone.  Sometimes it gets so contradictory I feel like starting out by saying, "presenting for your consideration..."  



And really presenting for your consideration...

The Numbers:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Level: 94 mg/dl.  Now if would just stay there. 
• Weight:  187ish again.
• Exercise:  45 minutes.  Hard to get going this morning, but the weather was cool and humidity low for Houston.  I was flying again. 
• Mood:  8.0

The Menu:

• Breakfast:  Oatmeal cooked the old fashioned way, in the microwave, and the usual morning fruit medley.
• Lunch:  Chicken Salad Sandwich and some carrots. 
• Dinner:  It's Friday Eve, that means pizza and salad.
• Snacks:  A thin slice of the chocolate desert the Charming Mrs. SWMBO made last Sunday.  Still got a bit of a sugar buzz this time.  Sigh. 

Fat Makes Us Fat.

I am going to start here.  The World Health Organization (WHO) says that Africa is facing a growing problem of obesity, diabetes and high blood pressure.  The population traditionally has been thin there (sometimes starving, but that's another matter all together) and consumed much of its calories in the form of carbohydrates.  Now as the continent shifts to a more Western style diet, namely high in fat, it is getting the health conditions found in wealthier Western countries.

I guess that's good in one respect.  Africa may be getting wealthier.

Two more Western sins are mentioned as well, smoking and lack of exercise. 

Fat Does Not Make Us Fat

Gary Taubes is a writer I respect a lot.  He has been reporting on diet for a long time and has written two very good books (here and here)on the foods we eat, mainly about how sugar and highly processed carbohydrates are making people fat.

He had a good critique of an HBO series called "Weight of the Nation" in the Daily Beast.  The series is about how we eat too much and exercise too little and that explains why we get fat.  We have to better follow the government's food pyramid and watch our portions.  (Note, I don't have HBO and can't watch it, so I depend on second hand reports.  I trust Taubes a lot to report acurately.)

Taubes has long written that the government's food pyramid is wrong and we should be eating less grains and starches, not more.  Portion size is also not that critical.  He notes we as a nation are following the food pyramid and it is not working.  We are getting fat because we are following the government's advice.

For Taubes, calories are not created equal. It's not that we are necessarily eating too much that is making us fat.  We eat too many of the wrong calories in the form of refined sugars and starches.  That in turn affect insulin and  are more likely to make us fat because those foods affect insulin, making us insulin resistant and eventually fat accumulates and we get obese. 

If we want to weigh less, we have to eat less sugar and refined carbohydrates.  Fat really does not matter.  Have cheeseburger, just no bread.

Oh, and exercise doesn't really help either.

Then there is this.

Fat Makes Us Fat. No, Really, It Does.

A very dry scientific paper describing why we get fat and diabetic.  I had to look up half the words in it and it talked way more about cell structure than I really care to know.  The key bit, however, is this:  Eat too much high fatty food and you get fat and diabetic. 

My advise is, as always, find a diet you like, that works for you and that you can stick with for the rest of your life.  There are a lot out there to choose.  And enjoy your life.  You are not getting out alive. 

Gila Monster Spit, Scarfing and Getting Dumb

May 16, 2012

Can a drug made from gila monster spit help you stop scarfing food?  If you say yes that may be a clue you have been eating too much sugar and its making you dumb.

More on all of that, but first...

The Numbers for Today:

• Fasting Blood Glucose:  103 mg/dl.  
• Weight:  187ish.  
• Exercise:  45 minutes and I was flyin' this morning.  
• Mood:  8.0

The Menu:

• Breakfast:  Morning fruit medley and the last of the oatmeal/fruit bake.
• Lunch:  Last of the brisket, last of the au jus (sounds classier than gravy) and a blob of sweet potato.
• Dinner.  Chicken, pinto beans and a salad.
• Snacks:  Last of the cole slaw.

A Official New Trigger for Type 2 Diabetes

Speed easting, or as we speed eaters say, scarfing is now an official trigger for type 2 diabetes.   In a group of recently diagnosed type 2 diabetics, those who scarfed were twice as likely to be diabetic compared to a control group of non-diabetics.  The recently diagnosed type 2ers were also more likely to be fatter and have a lower education level.

I scarfed and still have tendency to gobble things down, try as I might to slow it down. Regardless of the speed of my eating I am trying to keep in mind the 20 minute rule.  I eat a set amount and stop, regardless of the consuming speed.  After 20 minutes I generally feel full and satisfied.  End of the meal.  Eat quickly and it's easier to eat more because the brain still does not really understand that the stomach is full. More food, more weight.  One burger, fries and a Coke turns into a another burger and a hot apple pie. 

Sugar Making You Dumber?

As to the lower education level, well a study at UCLA did this to two group of rats:

1. Both groups were taught to handle a complicated maze.
2. Both  groups were fed a solution of water and corn syrup, a high fructose syrup, for six weeks. 
3. The second group was also fed Omega-3 fatty acid from fax seed and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). 

After the six weeks the rats were placed back in the maze.  The group deprived of the omega-3 had a harder time handling the maze.  They were also developing insulin resistance.

That lead the researchers to theorize that the insulin resistance was affecting brain function, namely memory and learning, and that omega-3 was mitigating the effects of the high-fructose.  

I guess that could be serious.  Uncontrolled diabetics do have more problems with dementia. Omega-3 fatty acids, on the other hand, are not hard to get in a human diet.  A wash?

Sounds like a good reason to apply for more research money to me. Your brain also is the biggest consumer of glucose, for what that's worth. 

Gila Monster Saliva Could Help Scarfers and Keep You Smart.

A drug made form gila monster saliva, Exenatide-4, has been shown to reduce food cravings in rats.  A synthetic version of the drug, Exenatide, is already being given to type 2 diabetics to help them control their glucose.  

Now, it is possible this drug can be used to help people, scarfers and the omega-3 deprived included, with food craving and thus lose weight and stay sharp.

The the thought of gila monster spit kills my appetite. So I guess it really does work. 

Fat Tuesday

May 15, 2012


The saying the "fat you eat is the fat you wear" maybe true and eating more fat is good way to lose weight.  Confused? Welcome to the wonderful world of diet information.

But first:

The Numbers:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Level:  103 mg/dl.
• Weight:  188ish lbs. 
• Exercise:  45 minutes.  I tried the interval approach this morning.  More below.
• Mood:  7.5.  I am better than I thought.

The Menu:

• Breakfast: Baked oatmeal and fruit and the usual morning fruit medley.
• Lunch:  A potato salad sandwich and leftover cole slaw.  Easy to make and very filling. Carb mania.
• Dinner:  Leftover brisket from Sunday and salad.  
• Snacks:  A small piece of desert the Charming Mrs. SWMBO made on Sunday.  I can't east this stuff anymore.  I get a terrific sugar buzz.

High Intensity Interval Training Update

This morning I tried the one minute interval training I read about yesterday called High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT).  It's making the most of a small amount of time and it's easy to do.  One minute of high intensity peddling (it works well for the bike and should work well for any aerobic exercise) followed by one minute a low intensity peddling.  What I realized is that my high intensity peddling is my normal pace when I get the groove going.  My normal rate is a high intensity rate.  So I finished by doing what I normally do.

I am so proud of me, but you don't know until you try, right?

The Fat You Eat is the Fat You Wear

Or,  moments-on-the-lips, years-on-the-hips may be true.  People who eat a big, high in fat meal may find the fat they consumed showing up on their waistline within three or four hours after they finished eating according to an Oxford University study.  Your waist is where your body stores fat for the short term.  Ideally, it goes from there to to burned off as energy.  A good reason to be proficient at (HIIT) or doing some physical activity for at least one hour per day, six hours per week.

The surprise is that it was stored so quickly.  Most had assumed that time required was a lot longer, but fat seems to get stored quickly.  If not burned off, the fat is eventually moved from the waistline to the the hips, or thighs or buttocks.  Eat enough of large, high fat meals and you get fat. What a surprise.

Except...

Diabetics did better on a high-fat, low carbohydrate diet

Fat may be good for diabetics looking lose weight and improve their hear health.  From a study done at the Linkoping University in Sweden, 61 type 2 diabetics were randomly placed into one of two groups.  One group was placed on a more traditional low-fat diabetic diet.  The other was placed on a high-fat, low carbohydrate diet.

Both groups lost about the same amount of weight.  The group eating the high-fat diet did have lower blood glucose levels.  The saturated fats in the blood were about the same for both groups, despite the one group eating more fat and the good cholesterol of the high-fat group was actually a bit better than the low fat group. 

The low-fat diet offered no statistical advantage over the high fat group. 

So what does this mean?  I don't know.  My is guess is portion size matters.  The key I think in the first study is the meals were large and had high in fat. In the second, I am guessing the portions were limited and that made all of the difference. If that was the case, makes the Twinkie Diet all the more believable.  I bet this also applies to non-diabetics as well.

Feets, Don't Fail Me Now Because I Have to Exercise.

Nerve damage (neuropathy) to the feet is problem with many diabetics, one of the many joys of this condition.  Assuming your feet are fine, exercise is a way to control or even eliminate your type 2 symptoms, but there is a catch, a pretty big one. 

But first,

My Numbers:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Level:  101 mg/dl.
• Weight:  188ish lbs. 
• Exercise:  45 minute bike ride, and starting tomorrow, work in some high intensity interval training.  See more below.
• Mood:  7.0  It's a Monday.

My Menu:

• Breakfast:  Morning fruit medley, as per usual, and a bowl of baked oatmeal, the Parrish Inn Version.  Man, very good, but I used blueberries, which is also very Michigan. The chef does say to be creative. 
• Lunch:  Leftovers from the weekend, a but of this and that. 
• Dinner:  More leftovers from the weekend.  Easy to make and clean up.
• Snacks: None. Busy day.

Diabetics and Their Feet

I was going to be a bit flip about this, that if nothing else being a diabetic is a good reason to get a pedicure. Neuropath, nerve damage caused by the corrosive nature of uncontrolled diabetes,  is a serious condition that once started often cascades into series of hard to control infections, amputations and death, all good things to avoid. The podiatrist here talks about avoiding these things.



Still a pedicure does feel good, regardless of your situation.

Exercise:  It's Not as Bad as You Think

A Professor of Exercise Medicine, Greg Wells,  says exercise alone can eliminate the symptoms of type 2 diabetes.  There is a catch.  It takes an average of six hours a day of physical activities.  Heck of a catch, eh?

The article is here. 

Before you click this off as ridiculous, bear in mind that there are two definitions of physical activity involved here. 

One is the habitual physical activity, the physical activities we do everyday, walk around the mall shopping, doing housework, gardening, kids playing on the playground, routine movement.  Just moving around is good for young and old alike.

The second is a more structure physical activity, both aerobic and strength training in some form. What exactly doesn't really seem to matter, says Prof. Wells, just do something, mix it up, keep it interesting.

So, broken down that way, one hour a day of physical movement does not seem so bad, does it?

Professor Wells mentions a very sad statistic.  A 10 year old kid diagnosed as a  type 2 diabetic at age ten will on average live 19 years less than a healthy kid.  His approach to solving the problem is a simple one, good diet and exercise. 

A good diet and exercise he says is also good for "obesity, cystic fibrosis, inflammatory diseases like arthritis, maybe even cancer. Almost every psychological disease: ADHD, Alzheimer’s, anxiety, depression."  Not bad for a simple solution.

There is also this from the New York Times.  The exercise time required may be cut by two thirds if you do it the right way with High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT).  It's simpler than it sounds.  If I am riding my bike, pump furiously for one minute, then slow it down for one minute and keep repeating this for 20 minutes. 

The whole video on this is here. Sorry, I can't embed this one. 

Obesity PC, Bullying Obese Kids and Other Tales of Government Run Health Care

May 10, 2012

Whatever you do, don't call an obese person obese.  It just upsets them.  Unless it's an obese child who isn't, then you can be cruel to be kind in the genocide of our young.  Tales of government mandated health care and fight against childhood obesity, doomed to fail.

But first

My Numbers for Today:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Level:  101 mg/dl.  Same as yesterday.  A silly mg/dl over the preferred fasting level. 
• Weight:  188 lbs.
• Exercise:  45 minute ride in some pleasantly cool air this morning. 
• Mood:  7.0  Weekend insight.

And then the


The Menu:

• Breakfast:  The usual morning fruit medley and oatmeal and raisins. 
• Lunch:  Same as yesterday.  Hummus and veggie sandwich with my interpretation of Greek tzatziki sauce.  That means I don't remember quite what I made it out of, other then it had yogurt and cucumbers in it. Hey throw in some salt and pepper and it's all good.
• Dinner:  Pizza and salad, the Thursday night usual.
• Snacks.  An orange.

From the Ridiculous to the Even More Ridiculous.
Health workers in England are being asked to not call obese patients as obese.  It may hurt their feelings and never mind obese is a legitimate medical term.

So how do you be honest with an obese person when they need to understand they are too fat and have to lose weight?  I have no clue.  Somehow calling someone thin-challenged doesn't quite convey the seriousness of the problem.  What is a good word to describe the person sitting in this chair?  I have no idea.

England, like the USA and a lot of the rest of the world, is getting fatter. Significant numbers of its population, young and old, are becoming obese and becoming sick because of it.  The cost of treating type 2 diabetes alone is threatening to bankrupt England's National Health Service (NHS), so it's understandable that something has to be done about it.

One approach it to reach the young.  They are also easier to intimidate and bully if you work in a government agency like the NHS.  The little guy pictured here is considered obese by the government.   This active, healthy 40 lb four year old is unhealthy and obese?  Talk about the death of common sense.

His story, and other kids like him and the outraged parents of the kids, is here.  Maybe this is problem best left to the parents to handle?  I think so.

To look on the bright side, the health worker hearts maybe in the right place, if not their brains.  That's not a very bright side, is it?

That brings me to these next two articles calling for government intervention to manage, control and prevent diabetes. One is from Australia, the other from the USA.  I understand the deleterious effects type 2 diabetes can have on individuals.  I understand the need for better diet and exercise among the young and old alike. If I can change and get better, so can just about anyone else.

Should the government insist on someone getting gastric bypass surgery?  I don't think so.

Genocide on our children as Dr Hyman?  Giving a kid a Coke and Twinkie may be poor parenting if done often, but calling it genocide is being absurdly over dramatic. There is no conspiracy for businesses to kill their own customers.  That is not how the world works, or legitimate businesses for that matter. 

The loss of liberty being so casually mentioned here is a greater problem than any ailment a meddlesome government wishes to fix.  Giving up the basic freedom to live your life for a few programs that will in all likelihood will fail is simply a bad deal.   Top down, centralized planning's record of failure is 100%.  This is what is being promoted here.

Man, talk about the law of unintended consequences.  Bastiat would have a field day here.

I trust people to operate in their own best interests.  When getting fat is no longer in your own best interest, you will lose weight.  This rise in obesity and diabetes cannot go on forever and it's won't.  People will change, particularly if the have the freedom to change.

Sheesh, I started to do this blog for fun.  This is not fun.  Government takeovers are never fun, just bad.

Diabetes Triggers

May 9, 2012

The Numbers for Today:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Level:  101 mg/dl.  Which is okay, but now anything over 100 is a disappointment.  Missed it by that much. 
• Weight: 188 lbs. 
• Exercise:  45 difficult minutes on the bike.  I had a hard getting up and I really dogged it for the 20 or so minutes.  Tired lack of enthusiasm this morning. 
• Mood:  6.5  Down mood continues. 

The Menu:

• Breakfast:  The usual morning fruit medley, good DASH Diet guy that I am trying to be.
• Lunch:  My attempt to recreate the vegetarian pita served at a local restaurant.  It  has humus and lots of vegetables on it.  What I am going to for that  tzatziki sauce I have no clue, but I will figure something out. 
• Dinner:  Salmon with sweet potatoes.  A favorite here 
• Snacks:  Prunes, one serving.  No, I don't have a problem and if I did, I don't know.  Hey, Klingons like them, or at least prune juice.

Other Triggers for Type 2 Diabetes
I got my type 2 diabetes the old fashioned way,  by eating too much and exercising too little.  I became fat and then diabetic.  That's the way 85% of those with type 2 diabetes trigger it.

While my trigger is the most common one today, it's not the only trigger.  I listed some here.

Here are a couple more. Note that two of these triggers were observed in studies involving mice.  Remember the saccharin study on mice decades ago?  That one turned out poorly. Lots of bad feelings all the way around.

Low testosterone: While low testosterone, obesity and type 2 diabetes all happen together, even thin men... er mice...with low testosterone can develop type 2 diabetes.  Diabetes developed regardless of the diet the thin, testosterone impaired mice were on, but those fed a high fat diet fared worse than those fed a low fat diet.  For humans, that may mean a low fat diet is best choice to at least lessen the severity of developing diabetes.

Eating too fast:  Those humans, not mice, who scarfed down their food were 2.5 times more likely to become diabetic than those who took a more relaxed approach to dining.  If this is true, I am big trouble.  The Charming Mrs. SWMBO always accuses me of wolfing down my food.  "What's the rush," she constantly tell me.  For the record, I say she is too slow of an eater. 

Why is it I don't buy this one?

I have no idea if this applies to fast eating mice, with or with out adequate levels of testosterone. 

I mentioned autoimmunity as a cause before, and there is potential treatment for that, hyperbaric oxygen treatment.  This study was performed on mice.

I should also note Michael Jackson slept in a hyperbaric chamber with the idea it would extend his life.

That didn't turn out very well, did it?


Finally, here's a clever rap video on living with diabetes.  As with so much in life, it's all in your attitude.

Obese Nation

May 8, 2012

The Numbers for Today:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Level:  97 mg/dl
• Weight: 188 lbs
• Exercise:  45 minute bike ride, somewhat cool this morning.
• Mood:  7.5  Why, considering I am looking for a job?  My blood pressure has noticeably dropped.  Take the good with the bad, I say.

 The Menu for Today:

• Breakfast:  Leftover cornmeal/whole wheat pancakes from the weekend, which I am happy to add, were a big hit and Usual fruit medley.  My niece and nephew where getting seconds. 
• Lunch:  Leftover pinto beans and rice.
• Dinner:  Leftover chicken for a chicken salad.
• Snack:  A slice of cheese and a four, count 'em, dried apricots.

Obese Nation

From the USA Today, by 2030, up to 42% of the population of the USA could be obese according to a study to be presented at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's "Weight of the Nation" meeting.  

This, I think, this is the where and when of the study's presentation.  I can't find the study on line anywhere, so I am assuming this is all in a press release that the USA Today is presenting, and the paper is just dutifully reporting it back.  

It all sounds so nicely dire.  Action must be taken.

Sorry, I get suspicious when I hear numbers such as this.  Scary numbers and precious little fact, good for attracting readers and little else. At best these are SWAGs presented as fact.  They may turn out to true.  The nation has been getting steadily fatter since the 1980's, when the percentage of obese people was about 15%.  It's now up to 36%.  

Don't get me wrong, this is a dry statistical summary of a serious financial and health problem.  Yet, the money and effort to treat obesity are resources treating  problems that didn't have to be there in the first place. These are sins of commission, the collective results of a lot of bad choices individuals have made.

This is a condition caused by choice, not fate, and individuals can make other choices.  I did. I chose to get better.  It takes effort, but it is not all that hard really.  Brain cancer is hard.  Cystic fibrosis is hard.  Losing weight takes some time, patience and better choices, but it's not hard. 

What really worries me are statements such as this from Eric Finkelstein, a health economist with Duke University Global Health Institute and lead researcher on the new study in the article:  "The obesity problem is likely to get much worse without a major public health intervention."

What does that mean?  The government is going to start making new rules and guidelines that will be followed or else?  I don't know, but from something called the Global Health Institute, whatever that is, I don't doubt it. I fear this is the real point of the study. Something must be done and if the government is paying the bill as in England, well, the government is going to set some rules.

People can't be trusted to make their own choices to get better. 

If that happens, I can guarantee one thing, it won't work.  Watch for a black market in Coke, Churches Chicken and Twinkies.

Update
As soon as I published this post, I found this article on Yahoo. Yes indeed, can I call 'em or what? "Weight of the Nation" is cited. The government is going to fix the obesity problem, just like it fixed poverty, education and energy, I guess.

There is a plan forming out there for the government to manage how we eat.  We can't do this by ourselves, the argument goes, people can't control themselves and so the government has to create and set the appropriate policies.  Personal responsibility does not work.  We need the guiding hand of the government to solve the problem.  That is scary.

The  Institute of Medicine (IOM) in a report "argues that multiple strategies will be needed to make the U.S. environment less 'obesogenic.'"  The IOM said the obesity problem is so bad that it will "take dramatic and systemic measures - from overhauling farm policies and zoning laws to, possibly, introducing a soda tax - to fix it."

Oh, this is going to fail.  Black market Big Macs anyone?  Doritos sold in plain paper bags?

What was I saying about getting older?

May 7, 2012

The Numbers:

• Fasting Blood Glucose Level:  99 mg/dl.
• Weight 188 lbs. 
• Exercise:  45 minutes in Houtson's nice,  hot sweaty morning air.
• Mood:  6.5  Bad things come in three's I've heard.  Let's see, the Charming Mrs. SWMBO's car needed a new catalytic converter, the wireless router died and suddenly all of those neat internet devices we have don't work, and what was the third?  Oh, yeah, I got laid off.  Weeeeeeeeeeeeee.  It's all good. 

Menu:

• Breakfast:  The usual fruit medley and the last little bit of Baked Fruits and Oats.  This is a tasty dish and the weekend guests really enjoyed it on Saturday morning.  The Charming Mrs. SWMBO wants me to make more and I think that's a good idea.  Thanks Ms. Perlsa.
• Lunch:  Leftover hamburger from last week. It was basically an edible hockey puck at this point.
• Dinner:  Fish tacos.  It's becoming a bit of a Monday dinner habit. 
• Snacks:  A small cup of Greek yogurt.  Okay, their economy sucks, but their yogurt is delicious. 

More Diabetes Fun for the Golden Yeas
Our brains shrink, seemingly along with everything else that's good, as we get to the elderly years.  That's normal.  

People with either pre-diabetes or type 2-level diabetes ,according to a study done on the elderly in Australia,  had lost nearly 2 1/2 times the brain volume as the patients with a stable, safe level of blood glucose in a two year period.  The shrinking happens in the frontal lobes, the part needed to make life good.  This is the part that controls memory, emotions and decision making.

Forgetful confusion is no way to age gracefully.  What is more than a bit scary is how fast it can happen.

The research does not explain why this happens, it just notes the statistical association.

Cynic that I am, somebody just made a nice career for themselves with this study if there is truly indeed a causal effect here.   Or not.  That's the beauty of it all.

One way to prevent dementia as we get older is something I do every morning, drink coffee.  Caffeine is good for the memory of diabetics.  I guess Coke, tea and energy drinks would work as well, not that I am going to consume them.  Stick with what works for me, coffee.

Must be why I am drawn to this wonderful brew in the morning and I never forget to have it. Does it work for non-diabetics?  Who knows?

The catch is that it works with diabetic mice.  How it affects humans is still to be determined, but I plan to hedge my bets every morning.

Cynic that I am, more potential research money to be had there as well.

On a happier note for your memory,  Science Daily reports that losing weight when obese can prevent or cure type 2 diabetes.  As I have long said, lose the fat, lose the problem.

I am not giving up my coffee, however. Can't hurt and it always brightens my mood and I need all of the mood brightening I can muster right now.